GRAND RAPIDS -- The Grand Rapids Griffins are happy to be sleeping in their own beds again.

The Griffins returned to town 7 a.m. Thursday following an exhausting five-game, 11-day road trip.

"That's a long time to be on the road," coach Curt Fraser said. "It will be great to be back and play in our own barn again."

They don't have much time to rest, though.

This weekend, the Griffins will play three home games in three nights for the second time in franchise history.

Although playing three games in less than 72 hours will be a unique challenge, Fraser said the team's first order of business and main focus is on tonight's game against first-place Manitoba.

Manitoba moved six points ahead of Grand Rapids in the North Division during the Griffins' recent five-game losing streak, which ended Wednesday with a 2-1 shootout win against Rochester.

"We competed hard, we just didn't get the results that we wanted, and you see what happens in the standings," Fraser said. "It seems like the other teams win all of their games. Now, we've got to make some ground up."

This will be the final regular-season game between the Griffins and the Moose.

The Griffins continue to play without many of their top contributors, who either are injured (Jonathan Ericsson, Tom Galvin, Mattias Ritola) or playing for Detroit (Ville Leino, Darren Helm).

That has given other players a chance for bigger roles, and Fraser said the Griffins' recent struggles may be beneficial in the long run.

"Sometimes, you need to have a little adversity," Fraser said. "You just can't roll through an 80-game season and expect to succeed in the playoffs."

On the road trip. the team spent a couple extra days in Toronto, where many players were able to see family and it held its annual rookie dinner.

"Off the ice, we did a lot of good things, and it's nice to bring your team closer together," Fraser said. "But we still need to focus and get the results on the ice."